SINGAPORE DIARY
by Elsa Tan

 

A Glamorous Weekend in Singapore

A gorgeous lunch party, dinner at a stunning new Italian restaurant, a visit to the wet market and two of Elsa's mainstay recipes.

 

 

Friday... 

The weekend has arrived and once again is packed with engagements. It began with an exquisite lunch party all in true traditional Chinese style!

The sumptuous seven course menu unfolds with crisp springrolls followed by 'Phoenix prawns' and turnip salad.

 

A particularly delicious dish is the Taiwanese style three-cup chicken served with an accompaniment of succulently tossed wok-fried cabbages in garlic and dark soya sauce, bell pepper and glutinous rice.

Dessert was Mango Tapioca, fresh mango diced with sweet potato, mixed with tapioca and softened by the coconut milk. The wine was a delicious chardonnay from Chile. Our talented hostess, Jeane mentioned that, after years of experimenting matching wines with Chinese cuisine, the chardonnay from Chile proved the best choice.  A superb lunch – great company, great food and terrific wine!

Saturday morning... back to basics...shopping!

Saturday morning, the ritual is going down to the Tekka wet market, in Little India. The wet market is simply out of this world. It has the freshest and most fragrant sensational combination of sense and sight. Before we start our vegetable and fruit purchases, we sit amongst the early morning shoppers at the food court of the market and settle for local coffee, known as 'Kopi', which in essence is a blend of rich coffee powder from Java, Indonesia and is served sweetened with condensed milk. For take-aways, this coffee is usually served in a condensed milk can strung on a string, but I always opt for a cup and saucer! This beats Starbucks any day! We then order 'prata', the traditional Indian dough fried and prepared with a choice of fillings such as onions, cheese or even meat traditionally accompanied by spicy curry sauces.

After we have eaten our local breakfast we proceed with our morning's activities. In our hot and humid climate, strong fascinating flavours are used to stimulate appetites jaded by the heat. Chillies, 'serai' (lemongrass) lends a lemony undertone, 'asan' (tamarind) gives an invigorating tartness to dishes. We use 'blacan', which is a pungent shrimp paste as well as well as turmeric, with its bright yellow colour and of course creamy coconut milk, which harmonises and balances. Lots of fresh coriander, ginger, curry and lime leaves are used in a variety of combinations in this eclectic cuisine, which is a pot pourri of exotic flavours. Among the vegetables most often used are leafy bok choy, lots of bean sprouts, okra, yams and of course many various forms of bean curd and soya bean.  

On our return home we take a gentle stroll with our twin boys to the botanical gardens. The ambling shady gardens are always a delight at this time of year with their masses of variegated palms, lotus leaves and stunning new hybrid orchids in brilliant colour combinations. They call Singapore a garden city with good reason as flowers and trees abound throughout.  

Our great friends Elana and Sabi Sabharwal (owners of Bukhara Restaurants in South Africa) were in town for a week and we invited them to dinner at home. On our menu was 'Mee Siam', which is another version of 'laksa', a lightly fried spicy rice noodle dish with its origins in Malaysia. This is served with a rich coconut flavoured prawn stock and a sprinkle of chives, prawns, hard-boiled eggs and tofu.

For the second dish, we served a clear chicken soup with wanton noodles followed by 'Ayam Siyow', chicken marinated in Tamarind Sauce with Wok Fried Greens. The tastes are for rich and often sweet puddings with liberal use of the soft dark brown sugar from the Aren Palm. Dessert was Sago pudding with 'Gula Malacca' and coconut milk. Sago is tapioca, which is exported from this part of the world. We had a great evening drinking South African wine and catching up on all the Cape Town gossip!

Sunday evening has arrived

Sunday evening and we are meeting friends at Oso, which is the new trendy Italian Restaurant that has recently opened off Singapore’s China Town district, a vibrant buzzy area.

The restaurant is owned by and is the brainchild of the award winning team of Chef Diego Chairini and fellow business partner, the restaurant’s general manager Stephane Colleoni. 

 

 

Chairini has worked in some of the world’s leading restaurants, including the Bice located in the Tokyo Four Seasons Hotel (which has been voted as one of the top Italian restaurants in the world) and other prestigious establishments such as the Royal Manceau Hotel, Paris, The Four Seasons Hotel in Milano Italy and the Hotel de Paris in Monaco where he worked alongside the world renown chef, Alain Ducasse.  

Colleoni’s credentials are equally impressive. He was the manager of the Duplex Restaurant in Paris, Restaurante Bice Paris at the Hotel Balzac, the Martinez Hotel in Cannes and the Savoy Hotel in London.  With such a collective wealth of talented expertise driving Oso, both Diego and Stephane have created a unique Italian restaurant boasting the finest Italian fare. 

The restaurant has a glass fromargarie with a select variety of imported Italian cheese.  Oso’s wine cellar has a private dining area within and provides an intimate setting for those dinners who prefer greater privacy. Chef Diego’s cuisine is modern Italian – always perfectly assembled with the freshest ingredients flown in from Italy weekly. 

My favourite on the menu is the wild 'Rucola' salad with sautéed baby shrimps infused with a lemon dressing or the Creamy Pumpkin 'Zucca' soup with sea scallops.  Not to miss is the  'Rigatoni' with braised rabbit, thyme and black olives Taggiasche; or the Roasted Cod fillet 'Merluzzo' in balsamic: sauce served with rosemary potato purée, which is also quite divine!

My husband, Yo-Hann, enjoys Braised Duck leg 'anatra' in red wine and liquorice sauce with a light potato purée.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To end we always choose a selection of imported Italian cheeses from various parts of Italy, including sheep’s milk cheese from Sardinia and Sicilia, milk cheese from Umbria and so the lust goes on!  The wine selection is carefully chosen by Stephane, and no doubt only Italian wines are sold. There is a constant buzz with trendy Italian music playing in the background. It is the next best thing to Italy!

Oso Restorante & Bar 
Tel: 65 6327 8378
E-mail: Oso27@Singnet.com.sg

© 2005 Elsa Tan